Our New Baby (Part 3 of 3)

Wow, November already? Boy, am I terrible at updating this thing!! I follow friend's blogs, friend's of friends blogs, and even stranger's blogs on a regular basis, but can never seem to find time to update my very own blog. I guess it is more exciting for me to read about others' lives than write about my own.

Anyways, the newest addition to our family is our yellow lab puppy, Annie. We got her in August when she was only 7 weeks old and weighed 9 pounds. She is now 5 months old and 45 pounds! Our life with a dog has been quite a ride, filled with many laughs and tears. Having a puppy is like having a toddler. She is potty training, teething, waking up at night, getting into EVERYTHING, and testing the boundaries around our house. It is a full time job. Gone are the days of coming home from work and hitting the couch just in time for Oprah! Welcome to the days of walking Annie at 7am and 4pm, rain or shine. We are permanently at her beckon call at potty time, dinner time, play time (or whenever she wants our attention.) While it has been quite a drastic change in our lifestyle, I wouldn't change a thing. She is sweet and snuggly and is learning more and more every day. It can only get BETTER from here, right??

Our life in a nutshell (Part 2 of 3)

JULY~

Once we returned from our honeymoon, Rob and I began packing to move into our new house. We were so excited to use all our new wedding gifts in our new house. We closed on July 9th, had some awesome helpers for the move, and immediately painted most of the rooms in our house! We knew if we didn't do it right away, we'd probably never do it. I'd be ok if I never had to paint again!! It was a busy, busy month!! We LOVE our new place! We are so comfortable here - It instantly became our "home." We have friendly neighbors, a nice yard, and live on a quiet cul-de-sac ... what's not to love??

The front of our house - LOVING the two car garage :) :)
This picture of the front of the house is missing the homeowners!!
I guess we'll have to get a picture before the summer is over!


Our living room
Our dining room

Our kitchen

Our kitties loving their new house

Our guest bathroom

Our laundry room

Our master bedroom

Our master bathroom

Not pictured: office (2nd bedroom), 3rd bedroom, and family room

You might notice the walls are a little empty! We've since fixed that! I guess you'll have to come visit us to see all the final touches! Hope you enjoyed a tour of our new "crib"!

Coming soon: Part 3 of 3 ~ a new addition to our family ;)

Our life in a nutshell (Part 1 of 3)

JUNE ~

Rob and I were married June 13th, 2009. We had the most beautiful day for a wedding and it was as perfect as I could have ever imagined! I have included some pictures below. Sorry, I couldn't choose just a couple - our photographer was just so awesome! They're ALL my favorites! (in no particular order) All photos courtesy of Kathy at Forever Photography. She was AWESOME!! You can check out her work at http://www.foreverphotographyonline.com/

Following our wedding, we spent 7 days in Riviera Maya, Mexico (1 hour South of Cancun) for our honeymoon. Once again, it was AMAZING! Hot and beautiful the entire time. We went shopping in Playa del Carmen, scuba diving, snorkeling/kayaking, swimming with the dolphins, touring the Ancient Mayan Ruins of Tulum, spa-ing (a romantic couples massage,) and lots and lots of relaxing around the pool with a cool beverage in hand. Bahama Mamas were my favorite... yum!! We also met many, many nice people and even made some new friends!

The beautiful entrance to our resort ~ Aventura Spa Palace, Riviera Maya

Rob and I with our scuba diving instructor

Had to do it ;) R+A = Love on the beaches of Tulum Just after swimming with the dolphins!

Isn't he handsome??? And I got to spend a whole week with him in beautiful Mexico. Love him! :)

Our First Shower!!!

This weekend my family threw Rob and me a beautiful wedding shower. On Friday after school, I headed back to Eau Claire for the weekend of festivities. Friday evening, my mom, Mike (her husband), Rob, and I made some delicious polka dotted cupcakes to serve at the shower. They turned out to be very yummy and also served as a beautiful centerpiece!

Below: Applying the white polka dots to the pool colored cupcakes -

the same color as my bridesmaid dresses!
Rob was the photographer documenting our hard work- thus, no pictures of him!

Our final product!!

Now serving as delicious dessert AND a centerpiece!

Both sides of my family attended the shower on Saturday, so it was a big one! My mom, aunts, cousins, grandmas, sisters, nieces, family friends, and maid of honor were all there. We also invited my soon to be mother-in-law, Mary, Rob's grandma, Catherine, Rob's step-mother, Jane, and his step-sister, Amanda. It was so nice to have them join us for the shower. Rob was a good sport and hung out around the house most of the day- wandering in and out of the festivities. My sister, Stephanie, planned some fun trivia games to help the guests learn about Rob and me, as well as a bingo game to play during the gift opening. My sister, Sara, served as my personal photographer. She did a great job documenting almost EVERY gift :) My maid of honor, Jenni, sat next to me and recorded every gift for me to refer back to in years to come. Thanks Jen!! My mom provided the clean house and most of the food. She also cleaned up afterwards - Thanks Mom!! We also had a TON of good food, and I'm sad to say that we didn't take ANY pictures of the spread.

My beautiful cousins, Terren and Lynsey, who will be bridesmaids in our wedding!!!

My maid of honor, Jenni, included a bonus item with my gift - "Bride Wars" I can't wait to watch it!! I'm sure we would NEVER be like them!! :)

My niece, Ella, found this "Bride To Be" veil at a garage sale and thought I needed to have it.

Ella will be one of our flower girls, along with her two little sisters, Olivia and Ava.

Thanks Ella, love you!!

Here are my special helpers: Jerra (in the pink), Olivia, and Ella. These sweet girls helped me open almost EVERY gift. They were GREAT helpers. Thanks girls!! Love you all!

Here's the final inventory - much more than our small kitchen can accommodate.

Can't wait to have a new house!! Hopefully SOON!!

Thanks to everyone who attended our shower and helped to make it a beautiful success!!! Thanks ladies!

Just Because

I came home from school on Thursday and this is what I found waiting on the counter for me! A dozen beautiful pink roses!

What a sweet surprise from my hubby-to-be! I don't consider myself a "flower girl" because I'd much rather see money spent on other things, but who wouldn't want a dozen beautiful roses on her counter now and then? They are very springy and smell great too. I hope our kitties don't eat them up while we're gone!

Thanks honey :)

We've Adopted!!

Lately Rob and I have been feeling that it is time to expand our family. After days and days of extensive research, we've finally adopted............two kitties!! Please meet Macy and Elli - our two new loves! After a week or so of searching for just the right cat, Rob and I came across these two sisters at the Eau Claire Humane Association. These two four-year-old girls were surrendered to the humane association in February when their owner had to move. We impulsively filled out an online application for the cats and Rob received a phone call from ECHA the very next day. While I was at work on Thursday, Rob headed to Eau Claire to "check them out." After spending a couple hours in Eau Claire, he called to let me know he was heading back to Holmen empty handed because the ECHA required a one-night waiting period for taking the cats home. We had decided we'd head to Eau Claire on Saturday instead. I arrived home after school yesterday (Thursday) and Rob helped me carry in all of the kitty supplies I had bought in anticipation of our new family member (or two.) As we walked upstairs with the supplies, I noticed that the bathroom door was shut with the light on. I immediately suspected something was up. I peeked inside and sure enough, these two sweet girls were looking up at me! What a nice surprise!

Macy

Elli

Think they're enjoying their new home??

Rob and Macy - her first night home

Sleepy Elli

Macy lounging on the ottoman

We can't wait to get to know the personalities of these sweet girls as they become more and more comfortable in their new home!

Have a great weekend!!